1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to retractable covering systems for large spaces.
2. Need for the Invention
Open bed trucks and barges are used to allow heavy equipment such as steel or machinery to be readily placed and removed by overhead crane or by fork-lifts or other moving and lifting devices. Most frequently, however, the shipped material, however heavy, is subject to weather, birds, to prying eyes, to frivolous damage or to vandalism. To protect such material, tarpaulins and temporary covers are installed and manually tied in place. The process of installing such covers requires skill and is time consuming. Driver and truck time spent covering a load is time during which the truck is not moving to its destination. It is lost time.
Garbage is generally carried in open trucks from the pick-up point to the land fill or incinerator. Such trucks are loaded through the open top by cranes. State and federal laws require such loads to be covered, both to prevent strewing wind-borne debris during truck motion and to isolate disease bearing materials from distribution by birds, animals and other so-called vectors.
Barges are frequently employed to carry grains and other moisture sensitive materials. After such fungible materials are loaded they must be covered for weather protection. Each hour spent performing the covering task means an hour during which both the barge and its docking or loading area are out of service.
Telescopes and cranes, generators and pumps are mounted to concrete pads. Chemical reactors, chemical settling tanks, engine repair shops; all are subject either to harmful environments or present or require weather or privacy protection yet all demand an option where, for their successful operation or service, they must be open to the sky at one time and otherwise covered at another time.
Yet portable covers must not only provide the required visual and weather protection, they must have substantial physical strength. Such strength is required to bear snow loads and to resist high relative wind velocities. Such high air velocities can occur either from natural air motion such as gales or storms over a stationary cover or from truck or railway car motion at highway speeds. Sufficient strength should even be sufficient to support a service person while inspecting or repairing the cover.
Further, for most efficient exploitation of personnel time and of truck or barge time, and of dock time, covers must be easily installed and removed. That is, they must be installable and removable with minimum person-power, yet in minimum time.